End of the World Update

Marie Exley of Colorado Springs is convinced that Armageddon, the end of the world as written of in the Bible, will come next year.

Her conviction is so strong that, though unemployed, she’s paid $1,200 to buy advertising space on 10 Springs bus benches through October to get the word out. The ad says, “Save the Date! Return of Christ: May 21, 2011, WeCanKnow.com.”

“I want to do all I can to get the message out,” Exley, 31, said.

Exley got the idea for the ads from listening to Family Radio, a Christian broadcast heard on 55 stations in the United States, including KFRY, 89.9 FM, in Pueblo. It’s hosted by controversial Christian leader Harold Camping.

Camping predicts Christ will return on the date in Exley’s advertisement. Listeners in other states have also purchased outdoor ad space to proclaim the date.

Although Mary Exley isn’t pleased with this idea:

“There are things I felt I always wanted to do — get married, have a kid, travel more,” she said. “But it’s not about what I want out of life. It’s about what God wants.”

Replies to This Discussion

There are a lot of cuckoo people around and goody goody, can I reserve a ticket for this event.
I suppose god wants all the evil on this earth as this is why it is happening because of him - or her.
Will Ms Exley apologise the next day when it doesnt happen, I am not ready to go to hell yet.

Nuts have been predicting the end of the world for a long time. Here is a partial list of such predictions or you can go to URL for the more lengthy one:

According to Isaac Asimov's Book of Facts (1979), an Assyrian clay tablet dating to
approximately 2800 BC was unearthed bearing the words "Our earth is degenerate
in these latter days. There are signs that the world is speedily coming to an end.
Bribery and corruption are common." This is one of the earliest examples of the
perception of moral decay in society being interpreted as a sign of the imminent end.
634 BC

Apocalyptic thinking gripped many ancient cultures, including the Romans. Early in
Rome's history, many Romans feared that the city would be destroyed in the 120th
year of its founding. There was a myth that 12 eagles had revealed to Romulus a
mystical number representing the lifetime of Rome, and some early Romans
hypothesized that each eagle represented 10 years. The Roman calendar was counted
from the founding of Rome, 1 AUC (ab urbe condita) being 753 BC. Thus 120 AUC is
634 BC. (Thompson p.19) 389 BC

Some Romans figured that the mystical number revealed to Romulus represented the
number of days in a year (the Great Year concept), so they expected Rome to be
destroyed around 365 AUC (389 BC). (Thompson p.19)

1st Century Jesus said, "Verily I say unto you, there be some standing here, which
shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
(Matthew 16:28) This implies that the Second Coming would return within the
lifetime of his contemporaries, and indeed the Apostles expected Jesus to return
before the passing of their generation. ca. 70

The Essenes, a sect of Jewish ascetics with apocalyptic beliefs, may have seen the
Jewish revolt against the Romans in 66-70 as the final end-time battle. (Source: PBS
Frontline special )

2nd Century The Montanists believed that Christ would come again within their
lifetimes and establish a new Jerusalem at Pepuza, in the land of Phrygia. Montanism
was perhaps the first bona fide Christian doomsday cult. It was founded ca. 156 AD
by the tongues-speaking prophet Montanus and two followers, Priscilla and
Maximilla. Despite the failure of Jesus to return, the cult lasted for several centuries.
Tertullian, who once said "I believe it just because it is unbelievable" (a true skeptic
if ever there was one!), was perhaps the most renowned Montanist. (Gould p.43-44)
247 Rome celebrated its thousandth anniversary this year. At the same time, the
Roman government dramatically increased its persecution of Christians, so much so
that many Christians believed that the End had arrived. (Source: PBS Frontline
special )

365 Hilary of Poitiers predicted the world would end in 365. (Source: )

Hey, I want in on the deal! hahaha... I'll even watch over your pets, cause they are not invited into paradise. There is a website that promises to take care of the pets left behind (for a fee $$$) in case Jesus shows up unexpectedly to take his faithful to heaven with him. It's actually making some money!

I think that apocalyptic thinking is an extreme expression of narcissism; people touting "end times" scenarios are generally marked by the belief that they are somehow special because they were chosen to have lived in such a special time. After all, Rapture theologians invariably place themselves on a white horse riding into the sky to see Jesus. I have yet to run across anyone who espouses the prophecy and thinks that they will be one of those who are to be left behind.

However, I don't think that worrying about non-supernatural threats to the world--such as nuclear holocaust, climate change, or disease epidemics--would necessarily fall under this narcissistic umbrella of doom. We do live in a society which is in its "technological adolescence;" I think that it is only prudent to be aware of the gap between our increasing ability for destruction and our lesser evolved capacity for conflict resolution.